The only way for nations to move forward and progress is to address and apologize for past wrongs.
The organization Witches of Scotland has dedicated itself to that very mission and is fighting for Scotland to recognize their past persecution of women accused of witchcraft.
Zoe Venditozzi and Madison Mitchel launched Witches of Scotland on International Woman’s Day 2020, and uncovered much of the overlooked history of witchcraft.
In 1563, the Witchcraft Act was declared law in Scotland. Being accused of witchcraft was considered a capital crime, and, if convicted, supposed witches were “strangled to death and then burned at the stake.”
A great majority, eighty-three percent, of these convicted witches were women. And, once accused, these women were tortured until they confessed. In Scotland, the primary torture tactic was sleep deprivation.
“We know now, of course, that sleep deprivation makes people confused and causes them to hallucinate. So, it is perhaps not surprising that it was a good method of getting ‘confessions’ from people accused of witchcraft,” the organization’s website says.
Other methods of torture included “pricking” skin with needles, crushing the body, and nail pulling. Throughout this whole terrible process, the accused women were “not even able to be witnesses in their own right at trial.”
Finally, in 1736, the execution of “witches” was left behind, and the law was altered.
But, it was too late. Nearly four thousand people were accused in Scotland during this time, and, since then, “there has been no apology, no pardon, and no memorial to those who lost their lives in Scotland.”
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So, Witches of Scotland hopes to bring some ounce of justice to those accused and wrongly tortured under the heinous law.
The organization has three main goals– a pardon for those who were convicted, an apology from the nation, and a national memorial meant to respect and honor the memory of those accused or convicted.
On December 19th, the organization’s founders posted an exciting update on Instagram. After podcasting about their cause and gathering a public petition, Witches of Scotland is now working to bring forward a bill that would pardon those convicted.
Zoe and Madison are also writing to the First Minister’s Nicola Sturgeon and the National Advisory Council on Women & Girls to support the bill.
In addition, the pair is asking for an apology to be issued on International Women’s Day 2022.
The founders hope that the Scottish Parliament will recognize that this campaign is widely supported in the community. So, Zoe and Madison have asked the social media community to share their mission.
You can sign up via email on the organization’s website to stay updated with the campaign. And, you can follow their journey on Instagram and Twitter @WitchesOfScotland.
“Let Scotland be a positive example in addressing its past and moving forward with a steadfast determination to do better and make society equal for all,” Zoe and Madison wrote on the @WitchesOfScotland Instagram page.
To visit their website and learn more about getting involved, visit the link here.